A woman with curly red hair wearing glasses and a maroon long-sleeved shirt, holding fresh green leafy vegetables inside a greenhouse with sunlight and plants.

Farm to Table (or Cafeteria)

Chef Anïsa Lewis launched a Farm to Cafeteria program at a private school in Decatur, transforming the way children experience food by connecting them directly with what they eat. Through gardening, culinary education, and freshly prepared meals, students not only learned where their food comes from but also developed lifelong habits that support health, sustainability, and community engagement. Anïsa works alongside a team of volunteers and contractors to bring the vision of farm-to-table cooking to life.

Program Highlights:

  • 🌱 Program Consulting: Still getting your local farm-to-table program off the ground? Anïsa is available to help you get systems in place, garner community engagement, finalize pricing, schedule your harvest, create recipes and more.

  • 👩‍🍳 Cooking and Nutrition Education: Children learn to prepare healthy meals with ingredients they harvested themselves, making nutrition tangible and enjoyable.

  • 🥗 Fresh, Wholesome School Meals: Meals are made from scratch using locally sourced, seasonal produce, minimizing processed foods.

  • 🏫 School-Wide Culture Shift: Encourages teachers, parents, and students to collaborate on building healthier school food environments.

  • 🌍 Sustainability and Awareness: Promotes environmental stewardship and reduces the school’s carbon footprint by shortening the food supply chain.

  • 🤝 Community Engagement: Connects schools with local farms, food artisans, and wellness experts to strengthen regional food systems.

Health Benefits of Farm-to-Table Eating:

  • 🥦 Increased consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits

  • 💪 Better nutrient absorption due to seasonal, minimally processed ingredients

  • 🧠 Improved cognitive function and classroom focus from balanced meals

  • ❤️ Early prevention of diet-related health issues such as obesity and diabetes

  • 🍽️ Encourages mindful eating habits and reduced food waste

Chef Anïsa witnessed how politically transformative it is when children eat what they grow—empowering them to make conscious choices about their health, food systems, and the environment. She is now dedicated to bringing this model to more schools and organizations, fostering healthier communities one meal at a time.